This spring, the membership of UAW Local 2322 will elect Executive Board officers. This is the official notice of such nominations and elections. The Joint Council approved this process on February 27, 2013. The Local considers all members in good standing nominated for all positions.

Local 2322 Executive Board

The Executive Board meets monthly to decide policy and make the operational decisions of the local union. The duties are described in Article 40 of the UAW Constitution, available at http://www.uaw.org/page/uaw-constitution-duties-local-union-officers. The open positions are: President; Vice President; Recording Secretary; Financial Secretary; Trustees (3 positions); Guide; and Sergeant-at-Arms. The term of office begins June 1, 2013 (unless a run-off ballot is required) and continues through May 2016. You must be a member in good standing of Local 2322 to accept a nomination. Those elected to the positions of President, Vice President, Recording Secretary and
Financial Secretary will also be elected as delegates to the Area and State Community Action Program (CAP) Councils and Conventions.

Definition of Membership in Good Standing

“Membership in good standing for one year” is calculated with reference to Wednesday, April 8, 2013, the day that nomination acceptances are due (see Article 38, sec. 3 of the UAW Constitution), with the exception of shops which have different work year schedules, for which two (2) consecutive semesters of membership will constitute eligibility for all purposes related to a “member in good standing for one year” (see Article 11 of UAW 2322 Bylaws). To vote in the elections, you need only be a member in good standing when ballots are mailed. “Member in good standing” for the purposes
of voting is defined as any dues paying member.

Accepting Nominations

All eligible members of Local 2322 are automatically nominated for all offices. It is incumbent on each member to accept her or his nomination. Acceptance of nominations will only be accepted in writing. You need to send a letter to UAW Local 2322, PO Box 1069, Holyoke, MA 01041 by April 8. If such letter is not RECEIVED by April 8, it will be considered late and invalid. No other method of accepting your nomination is allowed (e.g. write-in ballots, “sticker” campaigns, or another person announcing that you accept in your absence).

This procedure does not prevent a member from making a nomination of some other member or members for any specific office established in these elections. If you nominate someone, it is your responsibility to notify your nominee, and it is that nominee’s requirement to accept said nomination in the manner described above.

When the nominations period closes, there will be no further opportunities to accept a nomination. If you do not accept your nomination before the nomination period closes, your name will not appear on the ballot. There are no write-in candidates allowed during the election.

Following the close of nominations, the Elections Committee will verify the eligibility of all nominees. On Wednesday, April 11, 2013, the Elections Committee will meet with all candidates to discuss ground rules and other elections issues. All eligible candidates will be notified of the time and place for this meeting.

Inspecting the Membership List

Bona fide candidates for the above offices, i.e. those who have officially accepted a nomination, may inspect the union’s membership list once after the close of nominations and eligibility has been verified.

Mailing the Ballots

UAW Local 2322 will be conducting the above elections via a mail-in ballot. Therefore, ballots will be mailed out to all known eligible voters with addresses on file with UAW 2322 by April 15. Every member of the Local Union is encouraged to update or correct their address with the Local 2322. You can reach the Local 2322 Office at (413) 534-7600, by e-mail at info@uaw2322.org. Updating your information will help assure that you properly receive a ballot. If you do not receive a ballot, but feel you should have, please contact the union office. In any election in which the number of eligible nominees is equal to or less than the number of available positions, each eligible candidate
shall be declared “Elected by Acclamation” (Article 38, sec. 17 of the UAW Constitution) and no balloting will be conducted for those positions.

Ballots Must Be RECEIVED by May 15, 2013

Ballots must be received by Local 2322 by May 15. Immediately after collecting the ballots from the Post Office at 9 AM on May 16, the Elections Committee will return to Local 2322’s Conference Room at Open Square to tally the ballots.

Announcing the Results

Election results will be announced by the Elections Committee immediately following the tallying of the ballots. The installation pledge will occur at the next Executive Board meeting following the election at which point the results will officially be entered into the union’s record.

Appealing the elections

If someone wishes to appeal the conduct of the Executive Board election, appeals must be received no later than seven days following the election, or at the next membership meeting, whichever is later. This appeal must be made at the membership meeting or in writing, and may be sent by mail to Local 2322, PO Box 1069, Holyoke, MA 01041, and must be received by May 23, 2013.

Please direct any questions you have to the Elections Committee at uaw2322elections@hotmail.com.

During his 60-year career as an activist, organizer and “troublemaker,” Bayard Rustin formulated many of the strategies that propelled the American civil rights movement. His passionate belief in Gandhi’s philosophy of nonviolence drew Martin Luther King Jr. and other leaders to him in the 1940’s and 50’s; his practice of those beliefs drew the attention of the FBI and police. In 1963, Rustin brought his unique skills to the crowning glory of his civil rights career: his work organizing the March on Washington, the biggest protest America had ever seen. But his open homosexuality forced him to remain in the background, marking him again and again as a “brother outsider.” Brother Outsider: the Life of Bayard Rustin combines rare archival footage — some of it never before broadcast in the U.S. — with provocative interviews to illuminate the life and work of a forgotten prophet of social change.

Join us to learn about and celebrate Rustin’s life on the week of his birthday, and the 50-year anniversary of the 1963 March on Washington.

Sponsored by the UAW 2322 Solidarity and Education Committee, Western Massachusetts Pride@Work, Springfield Pride, and Holyoke Community College International Socialist Organization.